With the advance of science and technology, the developments of fabricating many miniature objects are progressively established. For example, one of them, that is, the trends of developing laser diodes are toward reduced volume. Moreover, as the functions of electronic devices are increasingly diversified in the electronic industries, laser diodes are installed in mobile electronic devices because of the novelty of lasers in light field applications. This laser source (i.e., the laser diode) and other optical elements can be cooperatively used to provide more different and novel functions. To mention a few, they can be different structured light patterns to be generated to meet the requirements of the motion sensitive applications.
Take a mobile electronic device with a laser diode as an example. The laser diode is disposed on a circuit board. An electric connection part is extended externally from a lateral edge of the circuit board. Through the electric connection part, the circuit board is electrically connected with other electronic components. Due to the structure and the material properties of the electric connection part, the electric connection part can facilitate maintaining a fixed relative position between the laser diode and a frame or positioning the laser diode.
However, the way of positioning laser diode through the circuit board still has some drawbacks. For example, if the mobile electronic device has been used for a long time, the mobile electronic device has been subjected to many times of impact, shock or drop. Finally, the circuit board is possibly upturned or shifted. Consequently, the original position of the circuit board relative to the frame cannot be maintained. Moreover, since the circuit board is not in the right position or the position of the circuit board is shifted, the heat dissipating mechanism or the heat dissipating path of the laser diode structured light module is possibly deviated. Under this circumstance, the heat dissipating efficacy loses or the heat dissipating efficiency is deteriorated.
Moreover, for generating a structured light pattern, the laser diode structured light module needs to have a corresponding lens unit. The assembling process comprises the following steps. Firstly, the circuit board with the laser diode is fixed on the mobile electronic device. Then, the laser diode is installed in the mobile electronic device and aligned with the laser diode. These steps increase the assembling complexity and the assembling time, and largely increase the labor cost.
Therefore, it is an important issue to provide a laser diode structured light module with good positioning efficacy while maintaining the heat dissipating efficacy and the lighting efficacy. Moreover, the structured light module with another light source such as a light emitting diode (monochromatic or polychromatic), an organic light emitting diode or a thermal source also needs to solve the above drawbacks or similar drawbacks.